New Owner Looking to Terminate Previous Tenant

[Martin Underhill]

I just purchased my first property in Colorado 30 days ago. It is a Triplex with existing leases. I am looking to Terminate one of the leases in 30 days and move into the unit. I just received rent for the September, despite not having an agreement in place. Looking for any advice on how to proceed.

[Marcia Maynard]

@Martin Underhill Welcome to Bigger Pockets! It would be helpful if you completed your profile and included your photo. Makes networking so much easier.

Seems you may be new to landlording. You will need to understand the landlord-tenant laws for your jurisdiction and follow proper legal procedures for terminating an existing lease. 

Until your tenants sign new leases with you, the lease that they had with their previous landlord will prevail. You need to get a copy of the leases for all three tenants and read them carefully. Those are the terms for now. If the tenants are on month-to-month leases, you can serve the proper termination notice at the next interval. If the tenants are on longer term leases, you will need to honor that lease to its conclusion, or negotiate to transition the tenants over to your lease by mutual agreement.

Remember, you will be taking someone's home away from them, so be kind. Unless they are problem tenants, give them ample time to relocate. Most landlords will give at least 60 days for such a transition.

Take some time to read other threads on this topic. You can learn best practices from other BP members about what to do when you become the owner of a multiplex with existing tenants.

Also, locate your local landlord association and learn from the locals too. Good luck!